Through a grant from Teen Cancer America in partnership with The Buddy Holly Educational Foundation, the Foundation created a lounge exclusively for patients who are receiving care and treatment in the Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Unit at University Hospital. The lounge is a space for patients to socialize and enjoy activities, music, art, TV, video games, movies and massage chairs. Also thanks to the grant, two staff members, a master social worker and nurse navigator, were able to join the Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer team.

Thanks to a grant from The Charity Ball Association as well as generous donations from the Rotary Club of San Antonio, Toyota and USAA, the Foundation was able to provide safety seats and child passenger safety education through the Buckle UP! Car Safety Program. This program helps families ensure their children’s safety while traveling in a motor vehicle.

We are honored to shine a light on our friends in the community who have contributed so generously to help reduce the burden on our patients and their families during the COVID-19 health crisis. These gifts have both encouraged our staff and provided lifelines of hope and healing to our patients.

Thanks to a generous gift from the Gus Owen Stephens Foundation, we were able to create two “Butterfly Rooms,” providing comforting spaces for pediatric palliative care patients and their families. The gift also allowed us to expand the perinatal palliative care program at University Hospital with dedicated staff to provide support, comfort, resources and memory-making experiences for patients and families.

Thanks to our generous donors, the University Health’s Salud-Arte: Art of Healing Program hosted a series called “Art in the Garden” in September 2020. Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the series offered a calming atmosphere and a place to decompress during an unprecedented and mentally taxing time. Patients, visitors and employees were able to safely social distance while enjoying nature, music and art.

Together, the Foundation, University Health and Valero Energy have raised $540,000 to purchase Stop the Bleed individual kits and training kits for Bexar County schools. Supplies in the individual kits can be used to help control bleeding in an emergency situation. The training kits are used to prepare staff and students to stop excessive bleeding and stabilize a patient until an emergency medical team arrives. These kits were purchased as part of University Hospital's Level I trauma team’s Stop the Bleed Program for schools.